Women Farmers Drive Coffee-Based Climate Action in Kaffa with OSSREA’s Support

In a landmark field mission, the Organisation for Social Science Research in Eastern and Southern Africa (OSSREA) has advanced its efforts to empower women coffee farmers in the fight against climate change, under the flagship project Empowering Ethiopian Coffee: A South-South Approach to Climate Finance and Carbon Credits. This fourth field visit, conducted from 22 to 30 July 2025 in Sheda Kebele, Bita Woreda, marked a significant milestone in the project’s implementation.

The OSSREA-led mission focused on strengthening the project’s agroforestry and climate finance objectives through training, seedling distribution, and stakeholder engagement. In partnership with Bonga University, the team conducted five decentralized training sessions using the Agroforestry Manual. Women farmers and their families were trained in climate-smart coffee practices—including shade tree integration, planting techniques, and seedling care. The trainings were delivered in Amharic and translated into the local Kaffigna language, ensuring accessibility and participation.

Participant feedback was overwhelmingly positive, with farmers requesting continued capacity building. OSSREA has committed to follow-up trainings on vermicompost preparation, farm management, gender equity, and carbon credits.

Simultaneously, the team supervised the distribution of coffee seedlings from Bonga University. The process faced logistical bottlenecks, such as overloading and poor handling, prompting OSSREA to introduce corrective actions, including staggered transport, better handling protocols, and improved oversight. Mr. Worku Alemu of Bonga University played a key role in coordinating the improved dispatch process.

A key highlight of the visit was a joint seedling planting event aligned with Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Initiative. The event drew participation from senior regional officials, including the Deputy Administrator of Kaffa Zone and the Bita Woreda Administrator. Project participants and local leaders joined in planting coffee seedlings, while media coverage from Kaffa TV, FM radio, and social media amplified the message of climate action and gender empowerment.

Progress was also made on introducing organic practices, with OSSREA initiating a partnership with NABU and the Bonga Agricultural Research Center to implement vermicomposting. A model farmer was selected to host the first demonstration site, with OSSREA providing technical guidance and materials.

Community mobilization remained central to the visit. OSSREA convened meetings with Sheda Kebele development agents to address dispatch challenges and provided raincoats to support their work. In a separate meeting, six peer influencers—local women farmers—were officially designated as community liaisons to support training uptake and farmer-to-farmer learning.

Field observations confirmed that banana seedlings provided earlier were thriving, and that coffee planting had begun in earnest, with most farmers adhering to proper spacing and agronomic standards. OSSREA issued reminders to those who had not yet planted to act quickly or risk seedling reassignment.

By the end of the mission, OSSREA had laid the groundwork for the final round of seedling distribution and set plans in motion for an evaluation meeting with all project participants. With strong momentum on the ground, the team will return within a month to deepen training on vermicomposting, gender, farm management, and carbon credit literacy.

This field visit reflects OSSREA’s ongoing commitment to a gender-inclusive, community-led approach to climate finance and sustainable coffee production. As part of a wider South-South exchange with Latin American partners, the project continues to position Ethiopian women coffee producers at the heart of global climate solutions.